Land Biomes! 20-1

1. Land Biomes! 20-1 Different ecosystems are home to different kinds of organisms! The combo of abiotic and biotic factors make each biome different! The animals and plants that live there do so because of adaptations that allow them to survive in that environment! There are Land Biomes and Aquatic Biomes! Remember...A Biome is agroup of ecosystems with the same climate and similar communities The Land Biomes are as follows: 1.) Forests: ~ Temperate Deciduous Forests ~ Coniferous Forests ~ Tropical Rainforests 2.) Grasslands: ~ Temperate grasslands ~ Savannas 3.) Deserts 4.) Tundra

2. Forest Biomes: 3 Types ** The type of forest that develops depends on the temperature and rainfall! 1.) Temperate Deciduous Forest Characteristics: ~ leaves change color in fall ~ warm summers, cold winters ~ rainfall avg. 29.5 - 49 in. Plants you may find: ~ leafy trees ~ ferns, mosses, shrubs Animals you may find: ~ bears ~ snakes ~ many bird varieties Let's see a cool video about the deciduous forest! 2.) Coniferous Forest Characteristics: ~ mostly coniferous trees (pine trees) * Conifer means "cone bearing" * trees have needle-like leaves made to keep moisture in and be hearty during the winter ~ cool summers/ cold winters ~ Avg. rainfall 14 - 29.5 in/yr Plants you may find: ~ various types of pine trees ~ maybe some small conifer shrubs Animals you may find: ~ Deer ~ Squirrels ~ Various birds ~ Insects ~Porcupines Let's check out more about the coniferous forest! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fnkTwWV1PwU&feature=related 3.) Tropical Rainforests Characteristics: ~ most diverse biome! ~ thousands of different types of plants and animals live here! ~Avg. rainfall about 157.5 in ~ very warm year round - 68oF - 93oF Plants you may find here: ~ thousands of varieties of flowers and trees * Bougainvillea, Strangler Fig, and Orchids just to name a few! Strangler Fig Bougainvillea Orchid Animals you may find here: ~ thousands of different animals and insect live here! ~ Chimpanzees, King Cobras, Toucans, Harpy Eagle to name a few! ~Also has some of the largest and most amazing insects! Chimpanzee King Cobra Toucan Harpy Eagle Let's see a video clip about the rainforest! (realplayer) Leaf Mimic Bug

3. Grassland Biomes: 2 Types: 1.) Temperate Grasslands Characteristics: * few trees * lots of grasses and flowering plants * avg. rainfall 10- 29.5 in * fairly cold winters/ warm summers Plants you may see here: ~ Grass! Many varieties! ~ Ironweed ~ Queen Anne's Lace ~ Coneflowers ~ Butterfly weed Animals you may find here: ~ Bison ~ Wild horses ~ Antelope ~ Prairie dogs Let's see a clip about the grasslands! (real player) 2.) Savanna Characteristics: ~ grassland with scattered clumps of trees and seasonal rains ~ avg. rainfall 59 in. / yr ~ Hot dry season and mild wet season ~ found in parts of Africa, India, and S. America Plants you may find here: ~ Baobab Tree - can live for thousands of years! ~ Acacia Tree ~ Bermuda Grass Animals you may find here: ~ wild dogs ~ elephants ~ giraffes ~ wildebeests ~ black mamba ~lions Let's see a clip about the Savanna! (real player)

4. Desert Biome Characteristics: ~ very dry and very hot! ~ avg. rainfall less than 10 in/yr ~ temps range from 100oF - 45oF ~ very sparse vegetation and animal life Plants you may find here: ~ Barrel cactus ~ Joshua Tree ~ Saguaro cactus ~ Yucca Animals you may find here: ~ spadefoot toad ~ jack rabbit ~ roadrunner ~ cactus wren ~ desert tortoise ~ thorny devil lizard Let's see a video about the desert! (real player)

5. Tundra Biome Characteristics: ~ Extremely cold climate ~ Low biotic diversity ~ Simple vegetation structure ~ permafrost - layer of ground is frozen permanently! ~ Short season of growth and reproduction ~ Avg. rainfall 12-20 in ~ Temps very cold year round -15oF to 54of Tundra is separated into 2 areas: Alpine and Arctic Alpine Tundra: found at the top of large mountains above the tree line Plants you may find there: ~tussock grasses ~dwarf trees ~ small-leafed shrubs Animals you may find there: ~ mountain goat ~ elk ~ butterflies ~ grouse Arctic (Polar) Tundra: ~ found near the North and South poles Plants you may find here: ~ 400 varieties of flowers ~liverworts ~low shrubs Animals you may find here: ~ arctic foxes, wolves, and polar bears ~ falcons, loons, sandpipers ~ arctic bumble bees ~ caribou, arctic hares Let's see a video clip about the tundra! (real player)

6. Marine Ecosystems 20-2 Marine is a word used to describe the water in the world's oceans. The oceans hold the largest and smallest animals on the planet! The oceans are shaped by abiotic factors: ~Water Temperature ~ Water Depth ~ Amount of sunlight passing through the water column Plankton - tiny organisms that float near the surface of the water ~ most plankton are producers ~ many organisms rely on plankton for food!

7. Water Temperature and Depth Water temp. decreases as the depth increases ~ because of this, different animals live at different depths and temperatures! Too hot or cold may cause some org. to stop eating or die! 4 Main Zones of the Ocean: 1.) Intertidal ~Where the ocean meets the land ~ waves always present ~ animals and plants adapted to live in this environment can survive the waves and being exposed to air for part of the day. ~ Animals: periwinkles, sea stars, anemones, crabs ~ Plants: Sea grapes, mangrove trees Let's see more! (real player) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u64ppKBY3cM 2. Neritic Zone ~ deeper water off shore ~ much sunlight penetrates here! ~ coral reefs live here and thus so do numerous plants and animals! ~ Animals: corals, sponges, tropical fish, dolphins, sea turtles ~ Plants: plankton, Sargasso seaweed Let's learn more about the coral reef! (real player - coral reefs) http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/environment/habitats-environment/habitats-oceans-env/coral-reefs/ 3.) Oceanic Zone ~ deep water of open ocean ~ this zone can be thousands of feet deep! ~ Animals: Whales, sharks, jellyfish, squid ~ Plants: Plankton may float close to the top, kelp, seaweed, and seagrass sea grass kelp Let's check out the deep ocean! (real player - deep ocean) http://dsc.discovery.com/videos/planet-earth-deep-ocean-sea-vents.html 4.) Bethnic Zone ~ the deep ocean floor ~ deepest parts do not get any sunlight! ~ Highly adapted org. live here - very cold and dark ~ some have thermal vents that spew out boiling water and minerals! Much of the life on the ocean floor thrives in these extreme environments - extremophiles! (remember?!) ~ Animals: worms, sea urchins, various fish ~ Plants: None!! It's too dark! Animals eat each other or get nutrients from things that float down from the thsurface! Gulper eel Giant isopod Dumbo octopus Let's check out the deep ocean! (real player - Planet Earth, deep ocean) http://dsc.discovery.com/videos/planet-earth-deep-oceans/

8. Freshwater Ecosystems Most water on land is freshwater ~ streams ~ rivers ~ lakes ~ swamps ~ ponds Stream and River Ecosystems: The water in streams and rivers is generally moving from fairly slowly to rapidly downhill. Where does the water come from? Rain Springs Snow melt Each stream of water that joins another larger stream is called a tributary. The smaller rivers like the Ohio River, Missouri River, Red River etc. feed into the Mississippi River...they are it's tributaries! The large river is the Mississippi River The tributaries are fed by the water in their surrounding watersheds. ~ an area of land from which the water flows into the brooks, streams, and rivers ~ The green area around the Miss. R. in the picture is it's watershed! The freshwater ecosystems are characterized by their abiotic factors: ~How quickly the water moves - streams and rivers: * certain plants and animals live in different velocities of water *some can live in slow moving water, others can survive fast moving water like rapids! Animals in streams and rivers: ~ fish ~ snails ~ crayfish ~ clams ~ insects ~ frogs and tadpoles Ponds and Lake Ecosystems ~ these ecosystems are different from those in streams and rivers ~ the water does not flow in these areas - the water is still 3 Zones: 1.) Littoral zone- area of water closest to the edge * algae and plants like cattails and rushes grow here * snails, insects, small fish, salamanders, and turtles live here too! 2.) Open-water Zone ~ across the top of the water and down as deep as the sunlight reaches ~ fishes and photosynthetic plankton live here 3.) Deep-water Zone * under the open-water zone * no sunlight penetrates here * Catfish, Carp, worms, crustaceans, fungi, and bacteria live here * These org. usually eat dead org. that sink to the bottom Let's see some more on the Freshwater Biome! (real player)

9. Wetland Ecosystem! Wetland - area of land that is sometimes underwater or contains a great deal of moisture Important facts: ~ supports many different animals and plants ~ help with regional flood control by soaking up large amounts of water after heavy rains or snowmelt ~ help filter the water supply and replenish groundwater 2 Types of Wetlands: 1.) Marshes * mostly grasses, algae, reeds, wild rice, and other low plants thrive * No trees! * found in shallow areas along shores of lakes, ponds, rivers and streams * common animals are muskrats, turtles, frogs, and birds 2.) Swamps * Has trees and vines - bald cypress, willows, oaks, poison ivy * may also have water lilies and duckweed * usually found beside slow-moving rivers in low-lying areas * flooded part or most of the year * common animals are alligators, herons, snakes, frogs, salamanders Let's check out some more about the Wetlands! (real player)